BOSTON — For the third time as NHLers, Bruins winger Shawn Thornton and Florida forward Darcy Hordichuk renewed acquaintances with their fists tonight at TD Garden.

The Bruins were up 1-0, on their way to a 4-0 win, when Hordichuk invited Thornton to go, and what ensued was nearly two minutes worth of hay-makers to get the Garden crowd up on its collective feet.

Here’s a look at it:

“He’s a pretty honest guy,” said Thornton about Hordichuk. “That’s not the first time we fought. So I obliged. It’s been a while for me too so I wanted to make sure there wasn’t too much rust in the pipes, I guess.”

Thornton had not fought since he took on giant Eric Godard on Pittsburgh Nov. 10. That’s probably because he needs to preserve his hands for goal-scoring. With Boston up, 3-0, Thornton notched his fourth goal of the season on a back-hander that deflected off two Panthers and in. The guy with a career high of six goals is now on pace for around 14.

For your viewing pleasure, here’s a look at the first two installments of the Thornton-Hordichuk trilogy: